Tag Archives: Trademark

In a complaint Tuesday, the Girl Scouts sued the Boy Scouts for trademark infringement and unfair competition, arising from the Boy Scouts’ recent decision to include girls, and to use gender-neutral terms like “scout,” that will allegedly confuse the public. From the complaint’s introduction:… Continue Reading

Last week, Judge Daniels granted in large part a summary judgment motion that Characters For Hire, a company that provides costumed characters for children’s events, had filed in response to trademark, unfair competition and and similar claims. According to the plaintiffs (Disney, Marvel, and Lucasfilm), Characters for Hire’s costumes, including ones named “Frozen Themed,” “Avenging Team,” … Continue Reading

In a complaint filed yesterday, the makers of Humvee branded vehicles (AM General) accused the makers of the Call of Duty video games of trademark infringement (and of related violations) because the games prominently feature Humvees: Defendants have used and continue to use AM General’s trademarks and trade dress in advertising and promotion of their … Continue Reading

In an order yesterday, Judge Swain awarded $19.35 million in trebled profits and punitive damages to Tiffany & Co. for its trademark infringement claims against Costco. The case stemmed from Costco’s use of the term “Tiffany” to describe generic rings sold in the jewelry section of its stores. The award is an increase over the … Continue Reading

In an Order Friday in a case in which an Italian fashion company accuses Ivanka Trump’s fashion label of creating copycat shoes (see our coverage of the complaint here), Judge Forrest ordered Ms. Trump to appear for a two-hour deposition, notwithstanding her claims to have had no personal involvement in the underlying issues:… Continue Reading

Last week, iconic Brooklyn steakhouse Peter Luger filed an action against a similarly-named rival. The defendant, Carl von Luger, operates a steakhouse in Scranton, Pennsylvania, with plans to expand to Florida. Peter Luger, in business since 1887, claims that the defendant attempted to create a false association between the steakhouse brands. The complaint includes claims … Continue Reading

In an opinion today, Judge Oetken clarified a preliminary injunction granted to the maker of a product called “My Cinema Lightbox,” a backlit sign similar to old-fashioned movie theater displays (see image below), against a similar product called “My Marquee Lightbox.” After winning its motion for a preliminary injunction, the plaintiff began instructing retailers that … Continue Reading

This week, the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Crotty’s grant of summary judgment dismissing trademark claims against Oprah Winfrey over use of the phrase “Own Your Power” (see our previous coverage here). The Second Circuit agreed with Judge Crotty that use of the phrase “Own Your Power” was fair use and did not infringe on the name … Continue Reading

Today, Judge Castel dismissed RICO claims brought against Alibaba Group Holding by a group of luxury goods makers including Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. The complaint accused Alibaba of providing services and a market platform to merchants that Alibaba should have known were selling counterfeit goods. Judge Castel specifically considered the plaintiffs’ claims that Alibaba’s … Continue Reading

Yesterday, Italian fashion company Aquazurra filed a complaint against Ivanka Trump and her partner Marc Fisher over shoes that allegedly infringe on Aquazurra’s designs. Trump’s company markets a red “Hettie” shoe that Aquazurra claims infringes on its famous “Wild Thing” shoe (pictured here): Aquazurra alleges that at least two other Trump shoes infringe on Aquazurra’s designs. … Continue Reading

In a trademark opinion yesterday, Judge Koeltl granted judgment following a bench trial in favor of a Dutch company, Schutte, that makes “bag closures” — the “small plastic closures that are used to close bags of pastries, bread, and fruit.” Schutte sought to cancel the trademark protection of the dominant U.S. maker of bag closures, Kwik … Continue Reading

Citibank today filed a trademark suit against AT&T, alleging that AT&T is launching a customer loyalty program called “AT&T thanks” that is confusingly similar to the Citibank’s own “Thank You” program. The two logos from the complaint are below. A judge has not yet been assigned.… Continue Reading

Today, Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A. filed a complaint against former NFL quarterback Vincent Ferragamo (who led the LA Rams to Super Bowl XIV as a rookie in 1980) and his Ferragamo Winery near Los Angeles. While Salvatore Ferragamo does not currently license its name for wines, it had previously done so in the U.S. in the … Continue Reading

Yesterday, Grammy Award-winning artist Beyoncé filed a complaint against Feyonce Inc., a Texas-based company whose products include plays on Beyoncé’s name and song lyrics. According to the complaint, Feyonce’s products are strikingly similar to those bearing Beyoncé’s name: The complaint alleges that Feyonce products infringe on trademarks and misappropriate Beyoncé’s superstar status without permission. The … Continue Reading

In an opinion this week, Judge Gardephe granted the plaintiffs’ motion to dismiss their own federal trademark claims, but found that the defendants’ declaratory judgment counterclaims were enough to preserve federal jurisdiction. Defendant Chobani had alleged that the dismissal of the federal law claims was simply a tactic for the plaintiffs to attempt to defeat federal subject matter … Continue Reading

In an opinion today, Judge Rakoff dismissed a case in which a company holding a perpetual license to the “Del Monte” trademarks for fresh fruits a vegetables alleged that the nominal owner had abandoned all foreign trademarks, so as to render them invalid under the Lanham Act. Although there are various instances in which the … Continue Reading

In an opinion Thursday, Judge Crotty granted Oprah Winfrey summary judgment in a case that was brought by a motivational speaking business, Own Your Power Communications, Inc., and that accused Ms. Winfrey of wrongfully using the phrase “Own Your Power” in her magazine, on her website and elsewhere. Judge Crotty found that the mark had … Continue Reading

In an opinion today, Judge Cote granted Tory Burch summary judgment in a case concerning knock-off merchandise. The motion was deemed unopposed based the defendants’ misconduct, including spoliation and fabrication of evidence. In a particularly notable passage, the opinion discloses that the Court ordered a forensic examination of the defendants’ opposition papers, and, from that examination, … Continue Reading

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Scheindlin dismissed for lack of standing claims brought by a plaintiff (“FTE”) claiming that the defendants had misappropriated trademarks to the Stolichnaya vodka brand. The Second Circuit held last year that FTE lacked standing, and the Russian Federation thereafter issued a degree apparently aimed at curing the issue. Judge Scheindlin’s … Continue Reading

In an opinion today, Judge McMahon preliminary enjoined a company called Matinee from using the phrase and logo “NYC Pride” to promote events that compete with those of the plaintiff, Heritage, the organizer of the LGBT’s community’s annual gay pride march and rally, which are scheduled for later this month. Matinee’s competing events include a … Continue Reading

In an opinion today, Judge Swain denied Tiffany’s pre-discovery summary judgment motion in a suit it brought against Costco for trademark infringement. She found that there were fact questions as to whether, as Costco contends, the trademark “Tiffany” has become a generic term for certain types of ring settings: In support of its argument that … Continue Reading

In a 219-page antitrust complaint filed today, the makers of “Twiharder,” a spoof of the popular “Twilight” series, claim that Twilight’s producers sent baseless cease-and-desist letters alleging IP infringement, and causing the distributors of Twiharder to walk away:… Continue Reading

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